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A review by keimre734
If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch
4.0
"A broken-down camper hidden deep in a national forest is the only home fifteen-year-old Carey can remember. The trees keep guard over her threadbare existence, with the one bright spot being Carey's younger sister, Jenessa, who depends on Carey for her very survival. All they have is each other, as their mentally ill mother comes and goes with greater frequency. Until that one fateful day when their mother had disappear for good, and two strangers arrive. Suddenly, the girls are taken from the woods and thrust into a bright and perplexing new world of high school, clothes, and boys. Now Carey must face the truth of why her mother abducted her ten years ago, while haunted by a past that won't let her go...a dark past that hides many a secret, including the reason Jenessa hasn't spoken a word in more than a year. Carey knows she must keep her sister close, and her secrets even closer, or risk watching her new life come crashing down." - Quote from inside front cover of my copy of If You Find Me.
I really enjoyed If You Find Me. At first, I was not exactly sure if I was going to enjoy it or not, but after a couple chapters, I did not want to put it down! This is the first book I have read by Emily Murdoch, but I enjoyed her style of writing. The mixture of emotional and lyrical words helps the story flow very well. The flashbacks that Carey has also helps the reader to understand what all happened during the 10 years while Carey was living in the woods. I also liked how Murdoch was able to weave in the Winnie the Pooh quotes into the story.
I did have a couple issues with the story of If You Find Me. First off, Carey let her guard down with her father way sooner than I would have if I were in her shoes. She leaves Jenessa alone in the house with the man who supposedly abused her and her mother when she was a small child. Also, since Jenessa is no blood relation to Carey's father or stepmother, I have a hard time believing that the Department of Children and Family Services would have allowed Jenessa to immediately move in with them. I feel like the author could have done a bit more research or changed the story line a bit to where it makes more sense.
One thing that I wish Murdoch would have explained was why Carey's mother decided to give up her two daughters to the Department of Children and Family Services? Did she voluntarily check herself into a rehab facility? Was she arrest in some kind of drug bust and wrote the letter during some kind of forced drug rehabilitation?
I really enjoyed If You Find Me. At first, I was not exactly sure if I was going to enjoy it or not, but after a couple chapters, I did not want to put it down! This is the first book I have read by Emily Murdoch, but I enjoyed her style of writing. The mixture of emotional and lyrical words helps the story flow very well. The flashbacks that Carey has also helps the reader to understand what all happened during the 10 years while Carey was living in the woods. I also liked how Murdoch was able to weave in the Winnie the Pooh quotes into the story.
I did have a couple issues with the story of If You Find Me. First off, Carey let her guard down with her father way sooner than I would have if I were in her shoes. She leaves Jenessa alone in the house with the man who supposedly abused her and her mother when she was a small child. Also, since Jenessa is no blood relation to Carey's father or stepmother, I have a hard time believing that the Department of Children and Family Services would have allowed Jenessa to immediately move in with them. I feel like the author could have done a bit more research or changed the story line a bit to where it makes more sense.
One thing that I wish Murdoch would have explained was why Carey's mother decided to give up her two daughters to the Department of Children and Family Services? Did she voluntarily check herself into a rehab facility? Was she arrest in some kind of drug bust and wrote the letter during some kind of forced drug rehabilitation?